In Memoriam—Gerhard Roth (June 24, 1942–February 8, 2022)

Abstract

In Memoriam—Gerhard Roth (June 24, 1942–February 8, 2022) Anita McChesney, Co-Editor On February 8, 2022, Austria lost one of its most significant cultural voices with the death of Gerhard Roth. The preeminent contemporary Austrian author earned widespread acclaim with his masterful use of unique perspectives to unflinchingly investigate the forgotten, silenced, and overlooked realms of history, of society, and of human consciousness. Austria was often at the center of those revelations, which earned Roth a reputation as a "Nestbeschmutzer." Gerhard Roth was born in Graz, Austria, on June 24, 1942. He enrolled in medical school at the University of Graz but broke off his studies in 1967 to work at the Graz computer center, where he later became manager. These experiences trained his eye for observing details and honed his skill in identifying minutiae in nature as well as in the human psyche. Roth entered the literary scene in the 1970s as an active member of the Forum Stadtpark literary circle in Graz and he published his first novel, the autobiography of albert einstein, in 1972. He subsequently became a contributor to the circle's magazine manuskripte and was a leading member of the Graz Autorenversammlung. After 1977 he devoted his time exclusively to his craft and, after 1986, spent his time writing in alternating residences in Vienna and Southern Styria. The "Augenmensch," as Roth would come to be known, was a prolific writer, amassing over forty publications that include novels, short stories, essays, plays, radio dramas, screenplays, and photo features. Roth secured literary acclaim with his seven-volume cycle Archive des Schweigens (1980–1991). This magnum opus combines photographs and a variety of narrative perspectives and styles to unearth silenced stories in twentieth-century Austrian history, particularly those relating to the country's monarchical and National-Socialist past. The subsequent eight-volume cycle Orkus (1995–2011) complements the previous series in its exploration into hidden realms of human experience. For Roth, the two series, which together encompass [End Page 55] over 5,500 pages and to which he devoted over thirty-one years of his life, are intertwined. Indeed, he describes the two series as a double helix: elements, themes, and characters recur throughout the works, and both cycles are devoted to exploring the origins of National Socialism in Austria as well as literary possibilities and forms. Gerhard Roth's work was recognized by numerous awards, including the Literaturpreis des Landes Steiermark, the Alfred-Döblin Prize, the Peter Rosegger-Prize, the Preis des Österreichischen Buchhandels, the Bruno Kreisky Prize, the Großes Goldenes Ehrenzeichen from the city of Vienna, the Jean Paul Preis, and, in 2016, the Großer Österreichischer Staatspreis. Austria's federal president Alexander Van der Bellen acknowledged the author's importance to Austria: "Klar und konsequent setzte er sich mit österreichischer Geschichte, mit den hellen, oft auch dunklen Seiten unseres Landes auseinander." For Roth writing was very personal, indeed central to existence. In an interview I conducted with him in 2010 for a literary event at the Austrian Cultural Forum in New York, he explained, "Ich schreibe über das, was mich bewegt, was mich betrifft. Ich bin süchtig nach dem Schreiben. Mein Schreiben ist sehr persönlich." I had the pleasure of hearing some of these personal stories when I visited him at his country home in southern Styria in June 2011. Over the course of two days, Roth selflessly gave of his time, relaying stories of his upbringing, his experiences in the aftermath of World War II, and the significance of writing and photography in his quest to reveal the hidden strengths and foibles of humanity. Gerhard Roth was prolific like few others, and he dedicated himself unremittingly to unearthing the silenced realms of Austrian history and society and of human consciousness. When he passed away on February 8, Roth had already completed several hundred pages of a text fittingly entitled Die Jenseitsreise. [End Page 56] Copyright © 2023 Austrian Studies Association